The women's golf team competed in its first tournament of the fall season last weekend, playing at the Dartmouth Golf Club in Hanover, N.H. Brown was tied for second place at 325 after the first day, but finished the tournament sixth out of 14 with a team score of 666 (325-341).
The women's golf team has a young lineup this year, highlighted by three freshman additions. Despite playing in their first collegiate tournament, Sarah Guarascio '11, Julie Robinson '11 and Susan Restrepo '11 all made significant contributions. Guarascio had an especially striking debut with a two-round 164 (79-85), which tied her with captain Blythe Crane '08 for first on the team and 19th in the tournament. Robinson finished in 27th place at 166 (81-85) and Restrepo shot a 177 (88-89). Veteran Holly Snyder '09 placed 40th at 172 (84-88).
Crane said she was pleased with this start of the season.
"Both Coach (Danielle Griffith) and I were very proud of the whole team. All three freshmen had solid scores. Of course, we always wish we had scored better, but this is a good start for the season and we are going to work to get better for the future," Crane said.
In assessing her own performance, Crane was more critical, despite her top score for the Bears.
"Personally, I think I played mediocre this past weekend. But as I play more tournaments, I will pick up again," she said.
The men's golf team also saw action in Bolton, Mass., where it competed in the Hartford Invitational. After three rounds of tough competition, the Bears finished 13th with a team total of 946 (310-317-319).
In past seasons, the team played mostly in two-day 36-hole tournaments. This year, the team is competing in 54-hole tournaments with 36 holes on the first day and 18 on the second.
Head Coach Mike Harbour stressed this change as imperative to prepare the athletes for the Ivy League Championship in the spring.
"The Ivy League Championship is a 54-hole tournament. In order to be ready both mentally and physically prepared for it, we have to compete in tournaments like it against tougher opponents," Harbour said.
Larry Haertel '08, the defending New England champion, led the Bears with a 25th place finish of 228 (79-76-73). Michael Amato '11 came in second on the team with a 237 (76-81-80).
As a new addition to the team, Amato said his goal was to contribute as much as he could to the team.
"We all feel the team could do a lot better than this past weekend. No one played to their capability. We have a solid team with solid players. Our goal is to win the Ivy League Championship at the end of the year. Right now we are trying to put ourselves in a position to achieve that goal," Amato said.
Ryan Larsen '08 finished at 242 (83-79-80), Chris Hoffman '09 followed at 243 (76-81-86) and John Giannuzzi '10 shot a 250 (79-83-88).
Harbour said some of the athletes might feel intimidated by the bigger tournaments.
"We have to get comfortable with playing long tournaments and against tougher opponents. Last year, we finished second at the Ivies. This year, our long-term goal is to win the Ivies, but in the short run, we have to improve along the way to be ready."
The women's team will compete next in the two-day Princeton Invitational in New Jersey this weekend, while the men's team will compete in the Adams Cup of Rhode Island at Newport on Saturday and Sunday.
